The former "Red Stag" Inn (Markt 6)
The building in which you collected your iGuide, is also one that bears witness to the town´s chequered history.
It was once said about the inn that; “The trail of the culture-seeking mortal, leads to the Red Stag. This house will not fail to provide the fine delicacies he is looking for. “
Today the building accommodates a number of the town’s administrative functions, and the tourist information office.
The origins of the building can be traced back to the beginning of the 17th Century. It was built by a financial administrator from Rudolstadt, and a privilege, granted by Duke Johann Ernst, meant that the building was later elevated to the status of a “free court”. This meant that it was not subject to taxes and compulsory billeting. During the second half of the 18th Century, gold and silver braid was manufactured here, as members of the Duke’s entourage were constantly in need of new decoration for their uniforms.
The Red Stag Inn was established around 1850. Ernst Hüther, a Saalfeld chocolate manufacturer, bought the building in an auction for the princely sum of 110,000 Marks. And in 1919 he had it converted into a noble hotel with a wine cellar, tavern and cake shop. Except for the addition of a proclamation balcony above the entrance, the market façade has remained largely unchanged.
The group of sandstone figurines at the entrance to the Tourist Information Office is an unusual feature. This is where the patron, the architect, the construction supervisor and the painter had themselves immortalised. Incidentally, the architect, Hans-Max Kühne, was involved in the construction of the main Leipzig Station.